Some neighbors you don't want. Like a hog factory that illegally dumps tons of manure into your local creek. Unfortunately, animal factories have compiled a shocking record of criminal and civil violations, animal cruelty, bribery, records destruction, fraud, worker endangerment, manure spills, and meat recalls. The Sierra Club's "RapSheet on Animal Factories" documents crimes, violations, or other operational malfeasance at industrial meat factories in 44 states. To find the grisly details, go to www.sierraclub.org/factoryfarms/rapsheets.

Bush Administration Withdraws Family-Planning Funds

In a setback for family-planning advocates, the Bush administration announced in July that it would not contribute to the United Nations Population Fund, claiming the fund provides aid for forced abortions in China. A State Department investigation found no evidence to support the claim. Nevertheless, the administration withheld a previously approved $34 million in aid. For more information, go to www.sierraclub.org/population/UNFPA.

Another Dead End for Legacy Highway

Ruling that federal environmental laws were flouted during the permitting process, a three-judge panel upheld a 10-month-old ruling that shut down construction of Utah's Legacy Highway. The proposed 125-mile-long, $415 million freeway project would cut across Great Salt Lake wetlands and adjacent farmland. The court ruled that the highway's environmental impact study failed to evaluate a nearby abandoned rail corridor as an alternative route and neglected to examine pending commuter rail projects. Legacy isn't dead yet however. For more information, go to www.sierraclub.org/currents/legacy_hwy.asp.